#Pocket Card Jockey tag

[atlantis54]

im bored so heres a list of 3ds games i like that you should download if you have hshop

-Parascientific Escape Trilogy: basically a mix of puzzle, mystery and visual novel. the games involve a lot of psychic and ESP themes (hence, parascientific) so if yer interested in like telekinesis and whatever i recommend it. also theres a scene in the 1st game where one of the characters straight up tells the protag “im gonna call the police” in the most polite and kind way possible and its great

-Legend of Dark Witch Trilogy: a sidescrolling platformer thats basically just megaman but with anime girls. the game is in a retro sprite style that looks awesome and the music is a banger, however its uh. very hard. even on easy. you might have to replay the levels a lot but as long as you remember to level up your stats youll be fine. besides getting a game over doesnt wipe yer progress or anything. if yer a fan of megaman you should get it cause its like a spiritual successor (like how yooka-laylee is inspired by banjo-kazooie and pizza tower is inspired by wario land)

-Pocket Card Jockey: i don’t really like card games but i still really like this one. mainly its bc its funny as hell. like in the very beginning your character straight up dies via getting trampled by horses. anyway, the game is essentially solitaire mixed with horse racing. if you go in not knowing how to play solitaire (like i did) you may find it a little hard but its still really fun regardless. the game’s artstyle is also just really nice to look at bc it makes everyone look... idk, toyish? playmobile? i wouldnt say its chibi but its close. anyway if you like comedy and puzzle games please play this game its great

-Tomodachi Life: this game is like if nintendo made their own version of the sims. basically, you run an island populated by the miis you create and you have to solve their problems. it can get a bit repetitive but never completely stale as a lot of wild things can happen. for example, on one of my playthroughs chikorita from pokemon and dedede from kirby married and had like 3 kids. like in any other situation the concept would be cursed but here its so ridiculous that its good. also, like pocket card jockey, there’s a lot of comedy aspects. this is probably the most iconic game out of the ones im listing here, so if you like life sims and memes, this is the game for you!

-Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido: yeah, most of the games im suggesting have stupid premises that are executed surprisingly well. in a world where fish doesn’t exist, literal freaking GODS make sushi. of course, nobody has tried seafood in this universe, so an ongoing war is happening over it. your job as the protag is to make sure everyone is able to get sushi without risking their life for it. yeah, sounds dumb, but the battle system for defeating enemies is really satisfying, as you link together pieces of sushi and yeet the empty plates at yer opponent. if crack taken seriously is yer thing, you should get it!

aaaaaand thats all i can think of rn. if you have hshop on yer 3ds then you should get these games bc their really cool and fun thanks :D

[spaceswordblaster]

Rules: tag 10 people you want to get to know better! Tagged by @jrvarsityjackets and @goatmattersinc

Relationship status: trying to lick @goatmattersinc 's face 😃💖 (we have been together for 7 years)

Favorite color: a nice solid red

Song stuck in my head: I've been ripping old CDs for the last few hours but right now it's "Hello Sunshine" by Super Furry Animals. I have no idea what this music video's like, hopefully it's not weird

Last song I listened to: I think it was this? Like I said, ripping old CDs

Three favorite foods: vegetarian Reuben sandwich, spaghetti marinara, nabeyaki udon

Last thing I googled: 'pocket jockey' because my friend was asking me what game I was playing and I couldn't remember the name?? (Pocket Card Jockey)

Dream trip: Oh man idk that I could pick one, I just really like traveling and planning trips. Japan obviously but I'd wanna go to like 4 different areas, also I wanna go to Amsterdam with family and eat lots of fucked up street food and go to Efteling

Tagging (no pressure though lol if you don't wanna then don't) : @hellovampy @wafflegravy @tiskycat @hemog0blin @freelancer-agentoregon @celestialmayhem @toronbo @ignitelimelight @i-chew-on-pushpins @grillcheesebaby

[cremisius]

tag yourself meme: pocket card jockey randomly generated horse names edition (note: hyper light and stepmania were custom entries but everything else the game did itself)

[myhauntedsalem]

Somerton Beach Man

It all began on 1 December, 1948, when the body of an unknown man was found, resting against a sea wall, at Somerton Beach, Adelaide.

An autopsy showed that deceased had been very fit, with broad shoulders, muscular legs and healthy organs.

He had no identification on him, but in his pockets were found an unused second-class rail ticket from the city to a nearby beach, an Army Club cigarette packet (containing a different brand of cigarettes – which in itself is unusual), a used bus ticket from the city center, a narrow aluminum American comb, a quarter-full box of Bryant & May matches, a hanky and half a packet of Juicy Fruit chewing gum.

He was dressed very fashionably for the time, wearing a singlet and jockey shorts, a white shirt with a narrow, red, white and blue tie, a brown knitted jumper, a brown double-breasted suit coat, socks and highly polished brown shoes. Which was all very well and good, but totally inappropriate for the weather. He was dressed for mid-winter, when in fact, it was the middle of summer.

The investigation into who this man might be then began in earnest. It was reported that a man, fitting the same description, was seen at the beach, in the same place where he was later found dead, the previous night. He was ignored as people thought he was drunk. At one time somebody saw him lift his arm before dropping it. No trace of alcohol or poison was found in his blood.

In attempting to identify the body, the two newspapers in Adelaide posted a photograph of him. That’s when 251 people came out of the woodwork, and claimed to know who he was. Every single lead was squashed by trivialities, such as that he couldn’t possibly be the woodcutter “Mr Walsh” as it was abundantly clear by the state of his hands that he had not cut wood in at least eighteen months. The only real, good clue they had to his identity was the expensive clothing he wore.

Police thought a breakthrough had occurred when the Adelaide Railway station found a suitcase in the station cloakroom. It had been checked in after 11am on 30 November and was assumed to have belonged to the dead man. It contained many things of interest, including clothing, shaving kits, a screwdriver, an American comb and a stenciling brush - among others.

All identifying marks, such as brand tags etc had been removed from the clothing. Well, all except “T. Keane” which was found on a tie. There was also “Keane” mentioned on a laundry bag, and “Kean” on a singlet. It is believed that whoever removed the tags did so purposefully and left the “Keane” tags on, knowing full well that the dead mans name was NOT Keane… yes, quite sordid.

The most intriguing thing of all is what was found in a small, fob pocket of the dead man. It is this which has had code breakers around the world stumped for the past 65 years. On this paper were printed the words “Taman Shud”. Expert translators were called in, and it was found that the words “Taman Shud” is a phrase meaning “ended” or “finished”, and found on the last page of the “The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam”.

In a bizarre twist, a week before the inquest, a man who wished to remain anonymous came forward to advise he had found a copy of the first edition of the book “The Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam” in the back seat of his unlocked car. At the time, his car had been parked in Jetty Road Glenelg, about a week or two before the body was found. Tests authenticated that the paper had been removed from this copy of the book.

There was also some handwritten text on the back of the book. This text is now referred to as ‘The Taman Shud Code’ (although the proper spelling is Tamam Shud for some reason most places go with the mispelling). It remains unbroken to this day, so if you fancy yourself a code breaker, see if you can make anything of this:

W [or possibly M] RGOABABD MLIAOI (crossed out) WTBIMPANETP MLIABOAIAIQC ITTMTSAMSTGAB

In another twist, on 6 June 1949, 6 months after the Somerton man had been found, the body for two year old Clive Mangnoson was found about 20 kilometers away from Somerton. His body was in a sack, and lying next to him was his father, Keith Waldemar Mangnoson, who was unconscious when found.

The father, Keith, was sent to a psychiatric hospital after medical treatment from exposure. Apparently both father and son had been missing for four days and it was estimated that young Clive had been dead for 24 hours. They were found by a man named Neil McRae who claimed he had seen where they would be in a dream the previous night.

During the autopsy, the coroner could not find a cause of death for Clive, but did rule out natural causes.

The boy’s mother, Roma, reported that she had been threatened by a man wearing a mask. This man was driving a cream car and he nearly ran her down outside her home. The car stopped, a man with a khaki handkerchief over his face yelled at her to ‘keep away from the police or else.’ Roma fully believed that the entire situation, of being threatened, of her son’s death and her husband’s psychiatric state were all related to her husband’s attempt to identify the Somerton Man. Perhaps he got a little too close?

The secretary of the Largs North Progress Association also received telephone calls, threatening that Roma Mangnoson would ‘meet with an accident’ if he interfered at all. And the acting Mayor of Port Adelaide also received three anonymous phone calls, stating that an ‘accident’ would occur if he ‘stuck his nose into the Mangnoson affair’.

Although the police suspect the phone calls to be a hoax, you never do know! The coincidences are great.

This man, who still, to this day, is unidentified, was buried in a simple grave with the inscription “Here lies the Unknown Man, who was found at Somerton Beach, 1 Dec. 1948.” Theories range from him being a spy, to a mobster, and anywhere in between. Was he Australian? American? We will never know.

Case solved?

In 2011 a woman came forward, in possession of a 1918, US-issued seaman’s identification card. It was for a British man named H. C. Reynolds. According to experts, although the image on the card, and the image of the dead man are not identical (or even very much alike), there are similarities between the two, such as the ear. There also appears to be a mole on the cheek of both men.

Could it be that it was H. C. Reynolds who has created so much intrigue over these past 65 years?

[tumblingus]

A small selection of the excellent horse names in Pocket Card Jockey for the 3DS

Tag yourself, I’m Mocket Ponster

[sporadicbeepboops]

20 Games I Loved in 2016

The Switch delay. Several big AAA duds. Another year without an official Mother 3 U.S. release. 2016 could have been a disappointing year. (Outside of video games, it certainly took its toll.) But at least from my perspective, the good far outweighed the bad. Virtual reality finally made it out of the gates, and despite some hiccups, it shows real promise. Long-delayed games like Final Fantasy XV and The Last Guardian somehow made it to store shelves AND surpassed expectations. And love it or hate it, Pokémon Go inspired a genuine pop culture craze the likes of which we’ve never seen before, at least as far as games go. I think all of that is worth celebrating.

Before we get to the list, some quick shout-outs and no-brainer caveats…

2016 was not kind to the Wii U, but the 3DS quietly had one of its best years ever. That’s partly reflected here, but I couldn’t make room for Dragon Quest VII, Fire Emblem Fates, BoxBoxBoy!, Metroid Prime: Federation Force and Gotta Protectors, to name a few. Sometimes it felt like Nintendo was just cleaning out its closet — how long ago was DQVII released in Japan? — but we benefited either way.

Overall, I played fewer games this year, but the ones I did play held my interest longer. Thanks to various microtransactions and DLC, 2016 probably hit my wallet just as hard.

What didn’t I play? Stardew Valley, SUPERHOT, Final Fantasy XV (at least past chapter 2), Frog Fractions 2, Hitman — oh, and I didn’t get to stuff from last year like Yakuza 5 or The Witcher 3, either. Yakuza 4 was pretty solid though.

I left off any new ports of games that came out last year or prior, unless there were substantial additions that changed the experience in a meaningful way. That meant The Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess HD and Mini Metro weren’t in the running, while Rez Infinite technically was.

Love making lists, hate ranking items in said lists, just because I’m incredibly fickle. There’s a good chance that I’ll want to shuffle everything around the moment I publish this. But my podcasting buddies are counting on me here, so it’s time to be decisive.

Keeping all that in mind, here are the games I really loved in 2016…

20. The Witness - I’m already cheating because if I’m being honest, I didn’t actually love this game. The Witness takes a couple dozen hours to finish, and I spent at least half of them staring at a notebook, drawing grids, connecting dots, and having no idea how to pave forward. But even if I didn’t love the game, I respect it immensely. I admire Jonathan Blow’s commitment to this singular idea, of taking the kind of puzzle you might see on a restaurant placemat and coming up with every possible permutation of it. And there is of course a “meta” layer on top of that, where solutions to each component change the environment around you — tree top bridges that unfold based on the paths your lines take, or colored glass panels that create new puzzles on top of old ones. It might be cold and off-putting at times, but The Witness is still commendable as the ultimate puzzle box.

19. SuperHyperCube - I bought into PlayStation VR for games like Rez Infinite and RIGs — big, flashy, “immersive” experiences. And they delivered! I’m a very happy PS VR owner, and I hope Sony builds on its momentum this year. (I’m skeptical, but then being a virtual reality early adopter was always a leap of faith.) However, while I got exactly what I expected from most of the launch titles, it's the simple puzzle game seemingly modeled off of “Brain Wall” that I keep coming back to. I turn on the headset to play Job Simulator or Battlezone, but I always play a couple rounds of SuperHyperCube before I’m done. A solid case for virtual reality not as a thrilling roller coaster, but a hypnotic, relaxing voyage.

18. Headlander - The best game Double Fine has put out since Iron Brigade. Free-roaming Metroid-style exploration, a perfect 70s-synth sci-fi score and a fun body swapping gimmick at the heart of it all. I wish there were more vessels for your noggin to control, but there’s a strong foundation here. 

17. Kirby: Planet Robobot - It’s easy to take Kirby games for granted, and that’s especially true of Robobot, which uses the same engine and many of the same powers as the recent Triple Deluxe. What does the former bring to the table then? Smart level designs that take advantage of the new mechs without letting them dominate the action. A novel mechanical world that feels distinct from the typical pastel meadows. New amiibo support. OK, so maybe it doesn’t add that much to the series, but it’s right up there with Super Star anyway. 

16. Pokkén Tournament - This game is a fresher, more enjoyable fighting game than Street Fighter V. It doesn’t even matter (too much) that the single player is pretty thin or that the roster is small. When’s the last time you played a one-on-one fighting game that felt truly new? Pokkén is a great 3D fighter and a great 2D fighter at the same time, which is no small feat. And it’s also a gorgeously animated recreation of those battles we all imagined happening in our Game Boys 20 years ago.

15. Uncharted 4: A Thief's End - The popular sentiment seems to be that Madagascar is when this final Uncharted entry really takes off. Slow drama and frequent cut scenes give way to island exploration and memorable shootouts. My take? The back half is fun and the epilogue is lovely, but I could spend an entire game in Nathan and Elena’s living room, or hopping around the globe for the next story sequence. Wherever you stand, this is a fine way to close out a reliable series.

14. Picross 3D: Round 2 - Seven Picross games — eight if you count the Twilight Princess freebie — on the eShop. That’s a lot of a perfectly fine thing. But none of them are Picross 3D. Thankfully, the real deal finally arrived this year, with hundreds of puzzles and a few extra gameplay wrinkles. Worth the premium price tag.

13. Titanfall 2 - The campaign didn’t need to be good. Multiplayer FPS games live and die by their multiplayer, and many developers seemingly write off the single player experience as an afterthought. That’s why Titanfall 2 is such an unexpected treat. The factory, the time hopping, the airborne carrier — all cleverly designed, with platforming gimmicks that would feel just as suited for a Metroid Prime game. I think the reason the new Mirror’s Edge fell flat for me was that this game featured the same parkour moves in a much more exciting package.

12. Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE - This crossover game is Persona-lite, yes, but I think that sells the characters and world a bit short. While its inspiration focuses on the pressures of being a Japanese high schooler, #FE is all about the Tokyo show biz scene. Pop music, soap operas, microwave cooking shows — it’s all very goofy, but the game still takes its protagonists’ dreams and ambitions seriously. #FE also makes clever use of the Wii U GamePad, turning it into a tablet/social app that helps keeps the conversations going. Even if you’re not into this particular “scene,” #FE may still win you over.

11. Rhythm Heaven Megamix - I can’t get enough Rhythm Heaven. They could put 20 new musical minigames on a cart annually and it’d make my list every year. Sumo wrestlers, lumberjack bears, monkey slumber parties — all magic.

10. Severed - A Vita game! It’s great to see DrinkBox Studios stretch beyond sidescrollers with this first person dungeon crawler full of grotesque monsters and creepy, colorful mazes. Swiping and poking on the Vita’s touchscreen feels great. The controls are key to Severed’s success; if battles were menu-driven, the entire game would fall apart. 

9. Pocket Card Jockey - I hope Nintendo keeps letting Game Freak be this weird. It’s not just that it’s horse racing plus solitaire. It’s your jockey biting the dust and being brought back from the dead to repay his debt to the angels. It’s the brassy, big band score that accompanies every race. It’s horses with luchador masks and cats hanging from their backsides. Pocket Card Jockey is a miracle of localization.

8. Pokémon Sun - Yes, another Pokémon game. The Alola region is the best thing to ever happen to this series. Previous games had regions based on cities like New York and Paris, but the results always felt half-hearted. In Sun (and Moon), the tropical island setting influences everything from the creatures you catch to the trials you complete. I’ve never demanded a believable world from this series, but that’s kind of what we get here, and it’s terrific.

7. Inside - This is the type of game where the less you know going in, the better. It’s Limbo — a previous Justin GotY — filtered through a twisted dream logic that I still can’t get out of my head months later. 

6. Paper Mario: Color Splash - I know you don’t like Sticker Star. Rest assured: that 3DS oddity feels like a rough draft for Color Splash, which improves upon its predecessor in every way. A textured, vibrant world that rivals Tearaway in its papercraft. Thrilling scenarios like a train heist, an underwater game show and the throwback above. Hilarious dialogue that mostly makes up for the many, many identical toads. I miss the liberties Intelligent Systems used to take with the Mushroom Kingdom, but everything else about Color Splash restores this spin-off series to its former glory.

5. Overcooked - This year’s couch co-op champ. Cooking with a partner is all about communication, and that’s doubly true when the kitchen is split across two flatbed trucks or on an iceberg rocking back and forth. My friends and I love head-to-head games like Smash Bros. and Towerfall, but it’s nice to play a game that’s all about puzzle solving and careful planning together. And I love the wistful stage select music.

4. Dragon Quest Builders - Minecraft has always fascinated me, but I don’t do well without direction. That’s why I’m so grateful for Dragon Quest Builders, which breaks down the open world construction into small, manageable tasks. I started off just sticking to blueprints and keeping decorations to a minimum; now, I’m spending hours building up towns the way I want them to look, for no other reason than my own personal satisfaction. Even taking the crafting element out of the equation, Builders does a great job of capturing the adventuring spirit of its parent series.

3. Pokémon Go - I didn’t set out to put THREE Pokémon games on here, and in a vacuum, this is much less satisfying than Pokkén or Sun. But we don’t play video games in a vacuum, and certainly not this one. I played Pokémon Go in Central Park, talking to strangers to find out where the Ivysaur was hiding. Or I played on my lunch breaks, exploring parts of South Street Seaport with coworkers that I had ignored for years. Go’s peak came and went, but it remains one of my fondest experiences of the year.

2. The Last Guardian - Another game that’s more than the sum of its parts. The Last Guardian is finicky and sometimes frustrating. Trico is hard to climb. The camera doesn’t know what to do when you’re up against the wall. So what? How many games feature a creature this lifelike? He may be an illusion made up of A.I. routines, scripted animations and fur shaders, but all of those elements come together in a uniquely convincing way. His evolution from reluctant ally to friend has a subtlety I’ve never seen before. I’m glad Ueda spends as much time focusing on the inner struggles as he does the external ones. Hope it doesn’t take another decade for his next game.

1. Overwatch - I didn’t even know what Overwatch was until two weeks before its release, and even then, I didn’t expect much from it. I had played Team Fortress 2 and thought it was just fine. I knew what to expect. Medics, tanks, builders — that sounded familiar to me. But I was so wrong. Overwatch isn’t just a team-based shooter; it’s the superhero team-up game I’ve been longing for since “The Avengers” was in theaters.

All 23 (and counting!) heroes have their superpowers, and all of them have their jobs to do. What really sets Overwatch apart is when these heroes are bouncing off of each other. Any combination of six is going to have its own dynamics. Mei dropping ice walls to give Reinhardt time to recharge his shield. Junkrat dropping traps to help Bastion watch his back. Mercy gliding up to Pharah to give her rockets a little extra punch. Every battle brings new possibilities and strategies to the table. I’ve played over 100(!) hours and feel like there’s still so much to learn.

But it’s not all serious business either. The colorful personalities, animations, costume designs and more do so much to shape the world, even when I know next to nothing about the overall “lore.” Last year, Splatoon felt like the only shooter I’d ever need, but Overwatch has actually managed to supplant it in my heart. That’s something this Nintendo fanboy never thought he’d say. Can’t wait to see how Blizzard builds on their masterpiece in year two.

[theliterateape]

Hope Idiotic | Part II

By David Himmel

 Hope Idiotic is a serialized novel. Catch each new part every week on Monday and Thursday.

MOONLIGHTING AS A DRUNKARD, Chuck Keller was the assistant manager of the communications department at palm gaming, the largest hotel and casino company in Las Vegas and the world. After Chuck graduated from Nevada State, he was hired as the news editor for Valley Life, the alternative weekly rag, where I worked as the A&E editor. But he jumped ship to work at Palm when the Journal, the larger daily paper, bought the weekly. He was also the editor of the radically libertarian magazine, Liberty.

Chuck not only held influence in a variety of Las Vegas circles, but he was able to keep his writer friends employed. On the day that Lou quit the radio gig to pursue a writing career and more financially beneficial opportunities, he called his friend Chuck for a job. Thanks to a small sexual-abuse–related firing, a position in the Communications Department had just opened up, and Chuck ushered his pal through the hiring process. Chuck and Lou had met earlier and became fast friends in college while working at the student newspaper. I was also a beneficiary of Chuck’s employ. A few months after the Valley Life buyout, I traded my press pass for a corporate ID card at Palm and, like Lou eventually would, worked as a communications specialist. And though Chuck was younger than both of us (Lou only by a year, me by four), Chuck was our boss twice over — at Palm and at Liberty.

The day gig in Corporate America was no one’s dream job. But it provided us with steady salaries and allowed us to freelance for nearly every magazine and alt-rag in town. Our office was small, buried in the bowels of Palm Gaming’s oldest and grandest property, the Tigris. Because of the office’s location to the back loading docks, it was often used to shuttle big-name performers into the property and to bust hookers off the property. Our department’s supervisor was usually absent, busy grooming herself to move upstairs into the corporate offices and, therefore, spent most of her time with her nose gently placed upon the casino president’s asshole, her lips firmly puckered.

There was always plenty of work to be done since the department handled all internal communications for four Palm properties. But our daily responsibilities were so mundane that Lou and I would often spend Monday through Wednesday freelancing before completing the week’s casino work — hitting all deadlines — on Thursday and Friday.

“Okay, so here’s the headline: New Carpet on Casino Floor, but You Still Have Cancer.” 

In addition to double-dipping while on the Palm Gaming clock, we were able to take extended drinking lunches, most often at Cuba Café a few blocks away from our office. We were so charming and such frequents, that the staff often comped their beer. This only encouraged more drinking before heading back to work — not that we needed sharp minds for what those afternoons in the Communications Department required.

“Lou. Neal. My office,” Chuck said one afternoon after getting back from Cuba Café.

“Christ, we smell like a fucking brewery,” Lou complained.

“Now, I don’t want a revolt on my hands,” Chuck teased.

“What worker-drone task do you have for us now, fearless leader?” I asked.

“Lou, I need you to take the camera up to the casino floor and snap photographs of the new carpet. Neal, I need you to host the employee karaoke competition in the employee dining room today.”

“Why does he get to host the karaoke?” Lou asked. “I was the disk jockey. I’m a goddamn stand-up comic. Let him take pictures of the carpet.”

“Nope. You’re better with the camera than he is,” Chuck said.

“Plus, I have a PhD in English,” I added. Yep. Dr. Neal Harding. My education was a laughable reminder that I was not at the career level that I should have been. I fancied myself a real writer — to one day be a well-respected professor of the written word. I had paid a fair chunk of my dues. I had already published one collection of poetry and recently, the unauthorized biography of the world-famous local synth-rock band, The Riots. The band had just released its second album, and my book could not have been better timed for hypersonic success. Or so I hoped. “When my book becomes a national best-seller, all of this will be behind us. I’ll take you guys with me wherever I go. But for now, Lou, you have carpet to photograph. And I’m going to listen to fat housekeepers sing Shania Twain.”

“Fuck,” Lou said. “Why am I taking pictures of the carpet?”

“Because they installed new carpet on the casino floor,” Chuck said.

“And?”

“And the bosses want us to do a story for the newsletter about the carpet. So the employees know the company is investing in itself.”

“Didn’t Neal just write a story about employee health benefits being reduced?”

“Yes,” Chuck laughed.

“Okay, so here’s the headline: New Carpet on Casino Floor, but You Still Have Cancer.” 

✶

LOU FELT LIKE AN IDIOT AS HE POINTED THE CAMERA AT HIS FEET AND PRESSED THE SHUTTER BUTTON. He tried making the photos more appealing. He walked to the busiest part of the casino and got into a prone position, careful not to wrinkle his tie and blazer. He shot at angles that made it obvious that photographed feet belonged to a dealer or were clearly the shoes of a cocktail waitress. True to his compulsive style, he never half-assed anything. Those pictures of the carpet were going to be the best goddamn carpet pictures the world had ever known.

“Excuse me. What in the hell are you doing?” A grizzled man in a dark suit with a Tigris name tag was standing over Lou. He could have been security, but without the standard earpiece, Lou figured he was a floor manager or pit boss.

“I’m taking photos of the carpet,” Lou said, realizing how dumb it sounded.

“It’s against casino policy and Nevada state law to snap photographs without permission. Stand up, son.”

Lou did. “I know. Look…” He caught the name on the tag. “John, I’m Lou Bergman. I work down in communications, and I have to take pictures of the carpet.” Lou handed him a business card from his blazer breast pocket. John looked it over and handed it back to Lou, accompanied with a face that acknowledged the absurd assignment. “Tell me about it,” Lou admitted.

“Why are you taking pictures of the carpet?”

“Because they just installed it.” He gestured like a showroom model. “All throughout the casino.”

John looked at his feet and around as if he’d not noticed the change. “And?”

“And corporate wants you to know it’s investing back into the property and its employees.”

“Didn’t they just cut our benefits?”

“They did. I just have to take photos to go alongside a story in the next issue of The River. “What’s The River?”

“It’s the quarterly employee newsletter.”

“I’ve worked here for 26 years, and I’ve never heard of it.”

“We usually work pretty hard on it.”

“I’m not going to lie to you, kid. This is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard of. Go ahead, take your pictures.”

“Thanks, John. The sooner I finish this, the sooner we can both put this behind us. And I’ll be sure to personally hand deliver a copy of the River to you when the story breaks.”

“You don’t have to do that.”

Lou returned to his desk, took in the remaining beer buzz and sifted through the hi-res images of carpet in what could only be characterized as psychedelic diarrhea.

✶

WE HAD STEADY WOMEN IN OUR LIVES.

Chuck and Lexi Albert were high school sweethearts. She moved to Las Vegas to be with Chuck immediately after earning her MBA from Morrill University in Indiana. She was on the fast track to a successful career as a hospital administrator and worked at one of Las Vegas’ most prestigious medical centers.

Lou and Michelle Kaminski had been great friends since college. She moved to Chicago to become a lawyer and they remained friends and kept in touch. And then, whenever Michelle was here visiting her parents, they would see one another, and without intent, they just seemed to fall in love.

It was — like love so often is — without any warning or planning. They first kissed in December, followed by daily talks through emails and phone calls, and it all just cascaded from then on. Lou had been to see her once in late February; now it was early April, and things had grown quite serious.

Michelle had arrived in town the same afternoon as the carpet photo shoot. Chuck, Lexi, Lou and Michelle met for dinner that night at Bella’s. My wife Natalie and I joined them. Unless I had to cover a story for one of the rags or watch some metal band play a tiny smoke-filled bar for the music column I held onto at Valley Life, I rarely ventured out after dark, like I said. But Michelle’s arrival in town was a special occasion, and this was the first time Natalie and I were meeting her. It was also the first time we hired a babysitter and left our infant son Stephen at home.

“What an amazing view,” Michelle said, as the six of us were seated next to a window showcasing a panoramic view of the valley.  “Do you think Stephen is okay, Neal?” said Natalie.

“I left the babysitter with beer money and a loaded revolver. I’m sure he’s fine,” I said. Natalie looked at me, acknowledging my attempt at being cute. She disapproved of the effort. The talk, therefore, pivoted to a more vanilla tone.

“How old is Stephen?” asked Michelle.

“Almost a year,” said Natalie.

“And this is your first night away from him?”

“Is it that obvious?”

“Let’s not talk about babies,” I interjected. “Michelle, welcome back to the Neon Dream. How long are you in town?”

“Four days. Until Monday. My friend Amanda is getting married in June, so we’re here for her bachelorette party.”

 “Are you the maid of honor?” Lexi asked.

“I’m a bridesmaid but am also planning the entire weekend for all 25 girls. Since I’m from Vegas, it made sense for me to do all of the planning. But it was not easy. Ask Lou. He had to hear all about it.”

“Whatever happens, all those girls are bitches,” Lou said. Michelle smiled at him, pleased with his well-rehearsed response. The rest of us laughed, knowing his statement was more her projection than his actual opinion.

“Thanks again for hooking us up with passes to Rouge tomorrow night, Chuck,” said Michelle. Rouge was the newest club on the Strip, and he had to manipulate a few favors to get 25 girls in on a Friday night. Once Lou assured him that all of the girls were at least moderately good-looking, Chuck was happy to oblige. “So…” she said, looking at Chuck and Lexi. “When are you two finally getting married?”

Lou took his girlfriend’s hand. “Let’s not get too personal before the first drink, Michelle.”

“Oh, come on. They’ve been together since what, high school? I think it’s a perfectly fair question.”

Lexi blushed. Chuck fidgeted in his chair. I laughed. Natalie looked out the window in an effort to be distracted. No one wanted to face Michelle’s question. Because if there’s anything more uncomfortable in the world than putting a couple on the spot by asking them the marriage question point blank, you’d be hard pressed to find it. And all of us — well, all of us but Michelle — understood that that question at that moment brought with it an extra special kind of discomfort. The subject of marriage had been a major talking point between Chuck and Lexi. She wanted to get married. He wasn’t ready.

Even if Michelle had known the sensitive nature of the query, it likely wouldn’t have stopped her from asking anyway because to a woman in her late twenties in a new, happy, healthy relationship with her best guy friend, it’s a perfectly legitimate, noninvasive question. From her point of view, getting married is the only thing that mattered.

“After knowing each other for so long, it’s about time,” Michelle said. Then she turned to Lou and looked into his eyes, smiled knowingly and said, “Don’t you think?”

He forced a smile back at her. For the first time since things took off with Michelle, he felt a twinge of panic.

Part I

[boyettemunch02-blog]

Methods For An Elegant Wedding ceremony Minus The High Price

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Will not demand an outfit computer code that is certainly inappropriate to the time of year. Stick to weather conditions forecasts and let your friends determine what the elements will probably be like. Do not assume your wedding event to get excellent. Do your best to really make it the best it could be prior to the true time, but on your big day just permit go and let issues take place because they can come. This way it is possible to enjoy the day as opposed to being concerned in regards to the fine particulars. Question your tiny sibling to experience on your wedding ceremony! Perhaps one of your family members or close friends has played out a music tool all their life? Probably there is a number of buddies they could invite to go along with them? What more unique music would you perhaps want? They'll be pleased to allow for you together with you won't have to pay an experienced for the job. Make an effort to delegate someone that will probably be your head to person throughout your wedding day. You might overlook to acquire something or deliver anything, and it could be a great idea to have somebody who may be not element of your wedding bash who could run various chores similar to this for you. As was talked about at the start of this post, planning for a wedding party might be daunting. Nevertheless, with all the right information and facts and concepts, it can grow to be a satisfying action to take. Get the things you have learned with this write-up and set it into activity while you commence to program this special day.

[delacruzratliff1-blog]

The Finest Guidebook To Go through When Discovering About Searching On-line

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[raindrenchedstories]

1 left to die 3. The girls are back in town.

The hunter. Was still. Out side the door. She could hear it whimpering. Poor thing. But that didn’t exactly mean she’d let it stay so close to her refuge. Rummaging around, she found useless items to try throwing at it.

After a few well expired food articles were tossed down, she eventually located the hunting rifle from earlier. Now that she had a chance to look it over, she noticed a note attached to it. ‘Left in good will for the next survivor to pass by.’ For that, she was thankful. Holding the weapon close for a moment.

After a few seconds of attempting to figure out the bells and whistles. Ensuring any form of safety was off and such, she slid the muzzle out the window. Resting her chin on the butt of the rifle. Pointing it to what she believed was the hunters location.

“Go on! Scat!” She warned. Sadly, it was utterly ignored. She huffed, squeezing the trigger. Three things happened in this moment.

One. The bullet missed the hunter, instead slinging to his right side over his legs.

Two. The gun kicked back, slamming Kim in the chin before sliding harmlessly down, landing on the hunters lap.

Three. The force made by the weapon effectively knocked Kim on her backside. As well as caused her a decent welt on the bottom of her chin. A welt that stung as well as locked her jaw in a constant state of sore. Laying on the ground, she clutched the minor injury wincing.

And now... The rifle was on the other side of the door. Fortunately, the hunter got the hint and was well on his way far from her.

Unfortunately, she startled the entire block of infected, and alerted them to her presence. The girl groaned, rolling onto her side. What ever. Unless the tank returned, they couldn’t get through the door.

With a huff, she staggered back to her feet. Searching her rations for something to snack on. Trail mix sounded good. She curled up under one of the tables filled with weapons and ammo, munching away.

Out side the door she could hear another Hunter. Maybe the same one. It snuffed around a while before giving a sharp bark. Slapping the door. She only curled up further. Of course it returned. She fired at it.

What she wasn’t expecting was three gunshots ringing through the air. The infected scattered, or were blown to pieces. Peeking out from her position, she found a taller, slimmer figure on the other end. It knocked politely.

“There someone breathing’ in there?” It was an older womans voice, old and gnarled. Tired. But it was human. Kims head connected with the bottom of the table as she sprung to her feet making a definite bang.

The moment she peeked out the door she came across the other woman. She was a pale woman, but thankfully, not infected. One ear had been shredded at the lobe. The other had small pock marks from where she once carried piercings. She kept her hair quite short as well. Over much of her form, what could be seen, were light scars.

But the way her face lit up. That made the girl smile right back. She almost threw the door open, only for the other woman to hold it back. “Whoa whoa kid. You don’t know me. Don’t just swing the door open for anybody.”

“I-What?” Kim couldn’t believe it. This woman was scolding her? For showing her face?

“Now, I’m not going to pester you long. So no need to fuss over me. I just got three questions for you.” She nodded. “First. You alone?”

Kim backed away, sealing the door back up with the heavy iron bar drilled into the walls. This woman might not have been a friend after all. And there SHE was unarmed for the most part. She wasn’t about to touch a gun after THAT. “Yes.”

“Good, you’re learning quick. Alright second question. Why’d you shoot?” The woman leaned on the door with a huff. Kim could hear something rattle not far off.

“There was a hunter… Laying on the door. I needed out.” The girl responded. Rubbing her new bruise.

“Hmm. Third. How’d you get that? Did someone or something hit you?” The angry flare in the womans voice cued Kim in. Her behavior was more protective than aggressive.

“That’s four questions.” The girl sighed. “But… Same answer. It was the gun. It… It just slammed back on me.”

“It’s called Kick.” The woman laughed. The butt of the rifle Kim had dropped was pushed in through the slotted window, and she gratefully received it. “No one ever taught you how to shoot eh?”

“I mean… When would I have used it?” The girl smiled. Life. Human life. Something that didn’t want to eat her.

“You have a point there. Hey. I’m not alone out here. Got a friend waiting on me in the parking lot. We saw that store down there had been looted, and then we heard ya. If you want. You can tag along with us a while.” She jerked a thumb out.

“I thought I didn’t know you?” The girl grinned, grabbing hold of her bag.

“You don’t. But lone wolves don’t last out here.” Kim lifted the bar, pulling the door inward with little abandon. Until she caught sight of the hunter laying before them. She scrambled to get her gun aimed at the beast. However the older woman snatched the barrel and pulled it away before she could fire.

“Ah! No.” The hunter jerked back the moment the woman spoke up. “He’s cool. Can’t hurt ya’ even if he wanted to.”

She wrapped an arm around Kims shoulders with a smirk. “Kid. Meet Cotton.” She pushed the girl closer to the Hunter, who perked up instantly. “He sniffed ya’ out for me. You took an interesting rout up here girly.”

Kim flattened herself against the older woman. Cotton seamed unfazed, giving a snort before stalking towards the edge of the rooftop. It was about then that Kim noticed the Hunters tape. Red. Unlike the general duct tape found on most hunters.

It didn’t seam to affect drag, as the sleeves and legs of his clothing had been long since shredded. She glanced back at the older woman as she was guided along. “He’s friendly?” She blinked in confusion.

“Oh yeah. Kind of has no choice. He’s shit at hunting so we feed ‘im. Give him shelter. Even marked him with that tape so we don’t shoot him by mistake.” The woman waited for Cotton to leap from his position. He didn’t really seam to aim for anything, like other hunters. He just went for it. Free falling.

Kim’s older companion took the more intelligent route and just climbed down the fire escape with a casual smirk. “Okay but… Why didn’t you just shoot him? Or you know, anything other than let him travel with you?” Kim followed along. Almost out pacing her new friend.

“Ah it’s a long story. I’ll tell ya’ when we aren’t avoiding zombies alright?” The woman hit the pavement, jogging to keep up with her hooded pal. Kim, meanwhile strode easily past her with little thought.

“Alright. I can’t say I’m all that comfortable with this. But if he hasn’t attacked you so far.” Kim jammed her fists in the pockets of her hoodie. Watching Cotton closely. “So. Why do you call him Cotton?”

“Cotton eye Joe. He’s only got one eye. I watched the poor bastard lose it to a jockey. Kid, anyone ever tell you that hoodie makes you look like a hunter yourself?” The woman sighed, striding along behind her.

“No. But that’s kind of the point. They leave you alone for the most part, if you initially look like something meaner.” She shrugged.

“Smart.” The woman placed two fingers between her lips. A sharp, loud shriek of air ripped past her. Causing Kim to scramble to shut the woman up. The older woman just wrestled her away laughing. “Relax! For some reason Zombies don’t notice that shit.”

The screeching of tires raked through the relative silence of the streets. An RV blew past them, blaring Kiss’ ‘Made for loving you’ out the open windows. The woman flattened herself against a wall as several infected hurdled after the vehicle.

“She’s going to lead them away from us. Then double back on silent.” She patted Kims arm and headed for the store. “So you’re local. Why not help me gather up everything we need?”

“It’s got an alarm.” Kim deadpanned. “Whole reason I was hiding up there. Not to mention the smoker.”

“Smoker eh?” She pulled the door open. Giving a sharp hissing noise. Cotton crawled in ahead of her, and she shut said door leaning on it. “Three. Two-”

“SCREEE!” The sounds of a mighty spat rang through the building. Clattering, breaking glass, and the wheezing of a smoker on the move.

“I thought you said he was shit at hunting?” Kim gazed through the window, finding that Cotton had missed his mark on more than one occasion.

“Eh, he gets it eventually. Just need to be patient.” The woman cast a glance over her shoulder. Nodding the moment Cotton managed to pin the wheezing menace. “Okay let’s go before he kills it.” She opened the door quite casually and tugged on the back of his hood.

“Grab what you can kid, we have a whole camper to fill.” The woman attempted to wrangle Cottons claws away from the smokers chest. As well as keep her coughing friend from attacking HER in the process.

“It’s KIM. Not kid. And is there any reason we’re not letting Cotton kill it?” Kim began grabbing everything she could. Making sure she had extra water for the trip.

“Well. Buddy and I have two hunters under our control here. We figured if we could get hunters why not other specials eh? I can think of a dozen and one uses for this guy.” She mannaged to pull the hunter off while gathering up the rope like tongue from the smoker.

Cotton huffed. Storming over to Kim and instantly wrapping his arms over her shoulders. Pouting. “Um...”

“Pfft. Looks like you found a buddy!” She smirked, folding her arms. The smoker she’d been fighting with was now well and truly bound. A confused look flicked over it’s features. “Any how you said you were Kim? Pamela. Nice to meet you kiddo.”

She gripped the lanky infecteds bonds, dragging him to the door. Soon after gathering as much as she could into the baskets provided by the store. Even managing to log into the store’s security system with a smile.

“Um...”

“Smoker had a security card.” She lifted the little plastic strip. “Say hello to Larry guys. Here. Hand me that shit. I’ll scan it so the alarm doesn’t go off.”

They worked systematically. Scanning everything food or water related. As well as a few luxuries. Pam seamed quite happy the moment she raised a concealer. It was the wrong shade for her. Off by about thirty tones. But she scanned it any how.

Kim was a little confused by some of the objects Pam took. Aside from the foundation, she dragged pairs of mitten from the back storage. Extension cords, buckets. Diapers were the strangest. And it worried Kim.

Catching the look on the girls face, Pam just smiled. “Don’t freak kid. Haven’t had the chance since this shit happened. But, they are absorbent. And in a pinch can be used as a bandage.” She tossed a fresh pack of Huggies at the girl.

The telltale rumble of an engine made it’s way to them. Pams face lit up. “Alright. Got what ya need?” The girl nodded. “Good. Let’s go ankle biter.” She hit the pay button on the computer and input the cash option.

The RV had been fortified on the outside. Mostly at the wheels and engine. The rest of it had been covered in a nailed on, slick metal. Driving was yet another woman. Patting her hands on the dash in time to the low playing music.

Pam slung a few baskets into the open side door with ruthless efficiancy. Kim struggling to keep up.  “Hey Rox! You know how you were all puffed up about Pan bringing you a rabbit yesterday?” The woman grinned, winking at Kim.

“Yeah?”

“One healthy survivor AND a smoker! Let’s see ‘im top THAT!” She hurled the still baffled infected in among the baskets. Cotton followed soon after, making a point to step on the poor thing. He found a large dog bed in the back corner and curled up there.

Kim found herself being patted gently on the back as a prompt to enter the wheeled fortress. “Also is this the right type?” Pam stuck the concealer in Rox’ face.

“Fuck yes! They had it!?” Kim made a point to seal the door well, carefully stepping over the struggling smoker. The two women chatted while she did so. Allowing her time to sit down and think. The interior of the RV was a little torn up.

Cotton demonstrated quite happily how that happened. As he raked his claws directly over a well worn seat.  Despite the scratching post literally nailed to the wall. “COTTON!” Pam and Rox managed to shriek in unison.

“You keep that shit up and I’m locking you in the shower again!” Rox was a woman much smaller than Pam. Who rivaled the smoker in height. But she looked to be far more energetic. She had a defined mocha skin tone. One that fit that concealer with out issue.

Any and everything she wore was a different shade of camouflage. From the cut off cargo pants to the jacket. “So Kim is it?” She tilted her head. A bright smile on her features.

“Y-yeah.”

“Good to meet ya! We’ll get you set up. Show you the ropes. Introduce you to the rest of the family and all. And Pam? Could you lock the smoker in the shower instead? He’s stinking up the place.” She slapped the other woman on the arm. Making her way back to the wheel.

“mhm.” The woman braced herself as the vehicle rumbled back to life and made it’s way through the crowded streets. “Kid, give me a hand and open that door.”

Kim gave no argument. Pulling the shower door open and watching with amusement as the slightly taller infected was hurled in with little grace. Pam stepped in a moment to open the vent above then back out and shut the smoker in.

“So… Who’s in charge?” Kim tapped her thumbs together anxiously.

“I mean. It’s kind of both Roxy and I. You’re the first survivor we’ve had in a long time.” She sat casually in the ripped up seat beside Cotton.

“But Roxy said there were others.” Kim tilted her head. Her response was Pam gesturing at the hunter sound asleep at her feet.

“So. We’re the only ones?” She slumped.

“No, That’s a mathematical impossibility. We’re just the local crowd.” Pam deadpanned. “I mean. You made it on your own for quite some time there.”

That was re-assuring.

They drove for a while. Almost hitting city limits. When a quiet, heart breaking sound escaped Roxy. “Oh. Shit.”

[divine-valley]

Ten Random Facts

So @agi92 tagged me to write ten random facts about myself so why not!

 I’m left handed!

I’m currently working in a bank, so far it’s been nice.

I named my dog Jesse Pinkman after the character from Breaking Bad~

The very first video game I ever owned was Pokemon Crystal.

I joined this hell site back in 2010...omg

I’m obsessed with Pocket Card Jockey right now.

Going to Comic Con and I’m super excited about that!!!

I really hate driving and it took me three times to pass my driving exam.

I enjoy doodling and writing as a hobbies.

My favorite color is purple.

So whoever wants to do this too go on ahead!